Gourmet Restaurant
on the shores of Lac du Bourget, Aix-les-Bains
A story of family and heritage
Over the course of its 60 years, the Lamartine restaurant has resolutely proclaimed its love of fine flavours. Jean and Odette Marin laid the foundations of the Auberge Lamartine in 1964.
By dint of hard work, passion and conviction, they turned it into a must-visit address near Aix-les-Bains, which their son Pierre and his wife Marie-Christine raised to even higher heights, culminating in the award of a Michelin star in 1989.
Combining a respect for tradition with daring creativity, the Lamartine restaurant draws its inspiration from the local terroir and world influences, creating a distinctive signature style that is further enhanced by its breathtaking views over Lac du Bourget.
Pierre and Marie-Christine endlessly nurture a rare curiosity for people and produce alike, transforming their restaurant into a delightful haven of indulgent moments in Savoie.
Brought up in the kitchens of the family restaurant, their son Valentin wants nothing more than to build upon the values of an establishment that has always known how to embrace the times.
Charlotte and Valentin, a new lease of life
He fell in love with cooking at an early age. Passionate about Savoie, Valentin has explored every inch of the region, from life in the mountains to rowing on the lake. Competitive sport and gastronomy have given him a taste for hard work and a sense of self-sacrifice and teamwork. After training as a pastry chef with Relais & Desserts Cédric Pernot in Chambéry, he went on to learn his trade at the Ferrandi School of Culinary Arts, before honing his talent in the Michelin-starred Parisian kitchens of Les Fables de la Fontaine and Georges V. After a spell in the Basque country, at the Kaïku restaurant in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, followed by a return to the Rhône-Alpes at Anne-Sophie Pic's 3-star restaurant, and an apprenticeship in Provence at the Dan B restaurant, Valentin has accumulated 10 years’ experience in Michelin-starred gastronomy, finally earning him a ticket to join the family Lamartine restaurant on the banks of Lac du Bourget in 2020.
She lives and breathes hospitality. Having trained as a beauty therapist, Charlotte has always nurtured a love of people, social interaction and conviviality. After working as a spa practitioner, then as an executive housekeeper in a 4-star hotel, she has a passion for entertaining and receiving others. A real people person, dynamic and cheerful, she puts her guests at the heart of everything she does. With Valentin in the kitchen and Charlotte in the dining room, the young couple are now moving forward hand in hand, happy, in their turn, to pass on the essence of Savoie and the heart and soul of their family-run restaurant.
Terroir and artisans
Au cochon sans soucis
Proud of their deeply-rooted regional expertise, Brigitte and Bruno Revel practise a form of pig-breeding that very few still do. For the Revels, everything revolves around a short supply chain, in partnership with a farmer-breeder who grows his own cereals to feed the animals. Raised naturally and in the open air, the pigs grow at their own pace to produce top-quality pork cuts and tripe produce.
The Tremblay Cooperative
To the south of Lac du Bourget, the soil is rich and fertile for growing fruit and vegetables. Working with 25 member growers, the Tremblay Cooperative guarantees the origin, freshness and quality of each of its products. Depending on the season, these can include cardoons, pears, strawberries, raspberries, peaches, chard, lettuce, celeriac, beetroot and much more besides. Here, the nature of Savoie is transformed into an open-air pantry.
Olivier Parpillon
The Parpillon family have been casting their nets into the crystal-clear waters of Lac du Bourget since 1857. Perch, pike, Arctic char, pike-perch and burbot are just some of the many treasures of this lake, which Olivier Parpillon frequents as much in winter, when the crosswinds buffet his boat, as in summer, when the sun outlines picture-postcard landscapes.
Les Volailles d'Alice
Humble and dedicated farmers, committed to the Bleu-Blanc-Cœur ethos of responsible agriculture, twins Alain and Daniel Raymond have been rearing free-range poultry on their family farm in Ayrens since 2002. Les Volailles d'Alice is a true label of quality. They are committed to a healthy diet for their animals, and to a humane and traditional way of rearing poultry that allows time to take its natural course.
La Maison du Champignon
Button mushrooms, pickled mushrooms, oyster mushrooms and shiitake mushrooms: at the Maison du Champignon in La Motte-Servolex, Kelvyn Vannier grows all his produce by hand. A natural, chemical-free cultivation method, where humidity and temperature are controlled to grow high-quality local mushrooms that are freshly harvested on a daily basis.
Luc Etellin
In Aiton, Luc Etellin raises some 1,300 mother ewes. This merry flock and their lambs graze for three-quarters of the year: first in the valley and then in summer, on the high mountain pastures of Montsapey. Fresh grass, wild flowers and high-quality feed give Luc's lambs their succulent flavour and exceptional tenderness.